Monday, January 13, 2014

Girl of Steel - A Fan Film Review

Recently, I had a chance to watch a short Man Of Steel inspired fan-film - Girl of Steel.

How was it? To sum it up in three words, professional but disappointing.

The technical execution of this film is quite good. Indeed, it is one of the better directed fan films I've seen and the editing used for the limited special effects during the action sequences is good. The performances are also interesting, though the script thus far doesn't give us much in the way of characterization past Kara being reluctant to get involved with helping people on a grand scale.

The biggest problem with this movie is the concept itself. The basic idea of Kara being a reluctant hero holds promise (Indeed, the current New 52 series started strongly with the same base concept) but we're given no reason for why she is reluctant to display her powers. A greater problem is the fact that Kara's reluctance is immediately forgotten when she is introduced to Jay Garrick, who coolly tells her to just call him "Flash". There may be some other reason for Kara's decision. Yet as it is it presented here, it seems like Kara's entire thought process is "Oh, I get to hang out with this cute guy? Sure, I'll join your team!"